Unions cases at the Supreme Court

Cases about labor unions and labor-management relations: bargaining, strikes and picketing, representation elections, union membership, and labor statutes such as the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Issues in this area

Number of decisions SCDB assigns to each specific issue. Issues with at least 5 decisions have their own page.

Decisions that altered precedent or struck down a law (6)

• Janus v. American Federation of StateAltered precedentLaw held unconstitutional
  138 S. Ct. 2448Decided June 27, 20185–4Samuel A. Alito Jr.
• Harris v. QuinnLaw held unconstitutional
  573 U.S. 616Decided June 30, 20145–4Samuel A. Alito Jr.
• Garcia v. San Antonio Metropolitan Transit AuthorityAltered precedent
  469 U.S. 528Decided February 19, 19855–4Harry A. Blackmun
• National League of Cities v. UseryAltered precedentLaw held unconstitutional
  426 U.S. 833Decided June 24, 19765–4William H. Rehnquist
• Boys Markets, Inc. v. Retail Clerks UnionAltered precedent
  398 U.S. 235Decided June 1, 19705–2William J. Brennan Jr.
• Lincoln Federal Labor Union v. Northwestern Iron & Metal Co.Altered precedent
  335 U.S. 525Decided January 3, 19499–0Hugo L. Black

Most recent decisions

• E.M.D. Sales v. Carrera
  604 U.S. 45Decided January 15, 20259–0Brett M. Kavanaugh
• Starbucks Corp. v. McKinney
  144 S. Ct. 1570Decided June 13, 20248–1Clarence Thomas
• Smith v. Spizzirri
  601 U.S. 472Decided May 16, 20249–0Sonia Sotomayor
• Bissonnette v. Lepage Bakeries Park St., LLC
  601 U.S. 246Decided April 12, 20249–0John G. Roberts Jr.
• Glacier Northwest v. Int'l Brotherhood of Teamsters
  598 U.S. 771Decided June 1, 20238–1Amy Coney Barrett
• Ohio Adjutant General’s Department v. Federal Labor Relations Authority
  598 U.S. 449Decided May 18, 20237–2Clarence Thomas
• Helix Energy Solutions Group v. Hewitt
  598 U.S. 39Decided February 22, 20236–3Elena Kagan
• Viking River Cruises v. Moriana
  142 S. Ct. 1906Decided June 15, 20228–1Samuel A. Alito Jr.
• Southwest Airlines Co. v. Saxon
  142 S. Ct. 1783Decided June 6, 20228–0Clarence Thomas
• Morgan v. Sundance, Inc.
  142 S. Ct. 1708Decided May 23, 20229–0Elena Kagan
• Badgerow v. Walters
  142 S. Ct. 1310Decided March 31, 20228–1Elena Kagan
• Salinas v. U.S. Railroad Retirement Board
  141 S. Ct. 691Decided February 3, 20215–4Sonia Sotomayor
• Lamps Plus Inc. v. Varela
  139 S. Ct. 1407Decided April 24, 20195–4John G. Roberts Jr.
• New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira
  139 S. Ct. 532Decided January 15, 20198–0Neil M. Gorsuch
• Janus v. American Federation of StateAltered precedentLaw held unconstitutional
  138 S. Ct. 2448Decided June 27, 20185–4Samuel A. Alito Jr.
• Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis
  138 S. Ct. 1612Decided May 21, 20185–4Neil M. Gorsuch
• Encino Motorcars, LLC v. Navarro
  138 S. Ct. 1134Decided April 2, 20185–4Clarence Thomas
• Encino Motorcars, LLC v. Navarro
  579 U.S. 211Decided June 20, 20166–2Anthony M. Kennedy
• Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association
  578 U.S. 1Decided March 29, 20164–4
• Tyson Foods, Inc. v. Bouaphakeo
  577 U.S. 442Decided March 22, 20166–2Anthony M. Kennedy
• Perez v. Mortgage Bankers Ass'n
  575 U.S. 92Decided March 9, 20159–0Sonia Sotomayor
• Integrity Staffing Solutions, Inc. v. Busk
  574 U.S. 27Decided December 9, 20149–0Clarence Thomas
• Harris v. QuinnLaw held unconstitutional
  573 U.S. 616Decided June 30, 20145–4Samuel A. Alito Jr.
• Sandifer v. United States Steel Corp.
  571 U.S. 220Decided January 27, 20149–0Antonin Scalia
• Unite Here Local 355 v. Mulhall
  571 U.S. 83Decided December 10, 20136–3Per curiam
• Genesis Healthcare Corporation v. Laura Symczyk
  569 U.S. 66Decided April 16, 20135–4Clarence Thomas
• Nitro-Lift Technologies, L.L.C. v. Eddie Lee Howard
  568 U.S. 17Decided November 26, 20129–0Per curiam
• Dianne Knox v. Service Employees International Union
  567 U.S. 298Decided June 21, 20127–2Samuel A. Alito Jr.
• Michael Shane Christopher v. Smithkline Beecham Corporation Dba Glaxosmithkline
  567 U.S. 142Decided June 18, 20125–4Samuel A. Alito Jr.
• Kevin Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corporation
  563 U.S. 1Decided March 22, 20116–2Stephen G. Breyer

Search all 373 Unions decisions

Source: Supreme Court Database, 2026 Release 01 (data file dated September 8, 2026). Imported into CaseTrail November 5, 2026. Coverage: decisions from the 1946 through 2025 Terms. Methodology · Report an error